Interested parties—including businesses raising crops or animals on agricultural and ranch lands potentially impacted by PFAS in groundwater; entities operating wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs); and related interest groups and associations—should be aware that the public comment period closes in one month, on April 16, 2025, for EPA’s Draft Sewage Sludge Risk Assessment for Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA) and Perfluorooctane Sulfonic Acid (PFOS), notice of which was published on January 15, 2025 (90 Fed. Reg. 3859). The original comment period was scheduled to end on March 17. However, on February 22, EPA extended the comment period to April 16, to “allow interested parties additional time to thoroughly review and analyze” the risk assessment. See 90 Fed. Reg. 10078 (Feb. 22, 2025).

Per EPA, “the draft risk assessment reflects the agency's latest scientific understanding of the potential risks to human health and the environment posed by the presence of PFOA and PFOS in sewage sludge that is land applied as a soil conditioner or fertilizer (on agricultural, forested, and other lands), surface disposed, or incinerated,” focused on those persons living near impacted sites or relying on crops and animal products associated with those sites. 90 Fed. Reg. 10078. If the final risk assessment identifies risks above acceptable thresholds, “the EPA expects to propose a regulation under CWA section 405 to manage PFOA and/or PFOS in sewage sludge to protect public health and the environment,” and it may also “consider developing regulations under other statutory authorities to further reduce PFAS discharged to WWTPs [wastewater treatment plants].” 90 Fed. Reg. 3859, 3864.

The full text of the draft risk assessment and supporting documents, along with related fact sheets and webinar materials, are available on EPA’s website, here.